Whitney Miller won the first season of MasterChef and is sharing her insider knowledge with us! This week, the chefs prove their egg-cellence, plus chef Graham Elliot shares his grilled asparagus and egg recipe.

Grilled Asparagus with Nutty Brown Butter and Sunny-Side Up Egg

courtesy of Graham Elliot

“This recipe is based on a 30-minute challenge. This is the idea that went through my mind when the contestants found out what the challenge was.: before you start cooking, you always want to analyze all the cooking procedures and figure out what will take the longest and start on that item first especially when given a time constraint.”

Ingredients

Egg – 1 ea

Asparagus – 4 ea

Butter – 1/4 lb

Lemon – 1 ea

Pecorino cheese – 1 oz

Salt and Pepper to taste

Start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. (Covering the pot will expedite the cooking time) Next, in a medium sized sauté pan, cook the butter at a medium to low heat to gently brown the butter. While both of the items are working, trim the fiberous bottom 1/4 inch of the asparagus off. Once the water is at a boil, prepare an ice bath. Next submerge the asparagus in the boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove the asparagus and shock them in the ice bath. Once they are completely chilled remove the asparagus from the ice bath. The cooking time will be approximately 5 minutes.

Finally, crack the egg in a well oiled non stick pan. Put on medium heat and cook for 5-7 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, move the egg around the pan to help it release from the cooking surface.

Meanwhile, toss the asparagus with salt and olive oil and place on hot grill. Cook on each side for 1 minute till they have a nice char. Season the egg with salt and pepper, season the brown butter with salt and lemon juice, and shave the pecorino with a vegetable peeler. All items are now ready to be plated.

Credit info: Reprinted from “MasterChef Cookbook” by The Contestants and Judges of MasterChef and JoAnn Cianciulli. Copyright (c) 2010 by Reveille Independent LLC. By permission of Rodale, Inc. Available wherever books are sold. Photograph by Vanessa Stump.

Whitney’s Recap

Wow! I have never seen a mystery box that big! Not only do the contestants have to use their individual box’s ingredients, but also the ingredient from the gigantic box, which Gordon reveals to be lobsters in a tank.

Whose dish is the best? Derrick, Alejandra, and Jennifer’s dishes are top three. Jennifer’s baked lobster dish with “rustic charm” (Gordon’s words) won over the judges’ palates.

The winner always receives a huge advantage in the elimination challenge–what will it be this time? Choose from three aphrodisiacs: oysters, artichokes, and black truffles. Hmmm…oysters could be difficult, with the process of extracting them from the shell. Will truffles challenge the contestants? Jennifer thinks so. She is given the ultimatum: watch the contestants cook or participate. What? She chooses to cook. Brave!

Cooking with passion and heart, to me, is the secret to a flavorful dish. With love for his wife in mind, Giuseppe prepared tagliolini. Graham remarked that his dish was “from-the-heart cooking.” Gordon loved it.

Some less composed and flavorful dishes came from Erryn, Adrien and Jennifer. Yes, I did say Jennifer, the one who could have chosen not to compete! She served a half-cooked egg dish; another half-cooked dish came from Erryn. His dish looked bare, with only a few slices of beef and raw vegetables. Gordon shocked me and everyone else when he asked for the person who thought he had the worst dish to take off his apron. Erryn maintained his dignity by stepping forward truthfully, saving Adrien. He certainly got my respect, and I think Gordon’s as well. As Erryn left, Gordon encouraged him to keep cooking.

Because of their winning dishes, Tracy is deemed team captain for the blue team while Giuseppe is the red team’s captain. Gordon reveals that the contestants will have to cook for the toughest critics: the judges’ moms. “These aren’t normal moms, but super moms!” exclaimed Giuseppe.

Based on information from the team captain’s interview with the moms, each team has to prepare a starter, entree and dessert.

The Red team plays to Joe and Graham’s moms’ palates by preparing a salad over a crispy polenta cake, spaghetti carbonara and apple pie. The Blue team took a risk in preparing pan-seared tarbot (fish), which Gordon’s mom does not like, along with carrot soup and a poached pear for dessert. Lidia announced the carbonara to be a very good rendition. And surprisingly, Gordon’s mom loved the fish dish. The moms voted, and the Blue team won for serving the best entree and dessert.

Using various techniques for poaching eggs and making hollandaise sauce, all of the contestants’ egg benedicts look and taste differently. Ben and Suzy’s dishes had the best presentation and flavor; they’re safe. Disaster hits with Giuseppe’s raw egg, Derrick’s lack of sauce and Alejandra’s over-cooked eggs. Raw eggs and the heavy-handed presentation of Giuseppe’s dish forced the judges to declare his dish the worst. His warm personality will be missed.